07/12/2010

The best course reduces the risk of failure in the CPA exam and significantly reduces the time required to figure out the key concepts. The hardest decision to make with a review course is which one improves the chance of success the most. 1) Course Materials

Every course will cover the same sections likely to come up in the exam, however tutors use their own ways. Good review courses have engaging instructors who can explain hard concepts in an easy-to-understand manner. Qualified lecturers ensure basic ideas do not waste teaching time. Instead, they will focus time to teach the more difficult ideas. Leading CPA review courses usually make sample lectures freely available so you can see how the course is laid out. A further way to figure out the quality of a review course is by checking out CPA exam preparation message boards as well as product review sites to see what other people are saying about the standard of other courses.

The highest quality courses also make their lessons available through different platforms, including DVD, CDs and live webcasts. The portability of how the media and course materials are delivered should be taken into consideration when evaluating a review course.

Access to question and simulations can become disabled at any time after activation. The ideal course materials and software does not require access to the net to use, and therefore does not expire. If you buy the type that expires, make sure that you will have ample time to understand the materials before it expires.

Practice questions offer an alternative way to make sure students understand key concepts. They help make it easy to retain through use of practical real world examples.

While this may be the safest approach, it can also be quite time-consuming. It is not uncommon for students to run out of time and not succeed in covering some of the frequently used questions. This impacts on their exam preparation and ability to pass.

Other courses take different approaches and limit questions to the key topics. This also results in students not having adequate preparation. It is far from ideal.

It is possible to restrict options through careful analysis of previous papers and to concentrate on questions that appear frequently. This approach ensures students use their time more efficiently and have a high probability of learning questions most likely to show up in an exam.

3) Student Support

Different CPA review courses provide different levels of customer support. Some courses offer limited student support while other courses provide email support. Some review courses offer online message boards and forums to allow students to interact with tutors and with one another. Before deciding on a review course, ensure it provides the level of support you require.

4) Frequency of Updates

One factor that many people take into account, that has previously been mentioned, is price. However, price is only an issue if you fail the exam. Find out which CPA review course is the most highly recommended amongst the many CPA exam review courses on the market today.